Why You Should Skip Nanowrimo

The thing is, on December first you’re not magically a better writer, you’re a writer who just wrote 50,000 words. That’s it.

Writing faster does not mean writing better, in fact I would argue the opposite. You spend a month so focused on a numbered goal that you’re just trying to get the sentences out, not make them the best they can be.

But revision comes after, right? Well, you could have wrote at a normal pace and edited as you went, crafting each sentence, each paragraph with love for the language. You have to revise so much afterward that it’s a waste of time to get the 50,000 out just to only keep 1,000 of them. And that’s only a maybe.

With nanowrimo you’re not paying attention – with writing you need to pay attention. You need to know what each sentence conveys.

The alternative: Focus on one part of writing you really want to be better at. For me, that’s dialogue. Instead of blindly crafting a novel, take the month to work on one aspect of writing. Dialogue, character, scene. Whatever.

Like I said before, doing nanowrimo doesn’t make you a better writer. It more than likely stunts your growth as a writer, because once you have those 50,000 words down, it’s hard to go through them with a truly critical eye. Because you finally finished it. Taking your time, practicing one thing at a time will strengthen your writing, which should be every writers goal.

If you’re doing the challenge just because you believe it’ll get you writing, then I’d ask, what are you going to do when it’s over?

So skip nanowrimo, because it’s not for the writer who wants to grow in skill, it’s for the writer who just wants to say they wrote 50,000 words in a month.

I respectfully disagree. For you, those 50k may not be necessary, but for a lot of people, they do not have anything finished yet. How can you know what you need to work on, if you haven’t written a finished manuscript and can actually see where you’re going wrong? NaNoWriMo gives some people the ability to finish their first story and finally see that they can write. You need to know you can write something before you can figure out how you can write something good.

I also disagree with the claim that the speed you need for NaNo implies 98% of what you write is crap. I believe writers have the self respect to at least write words pertaining to their story, and any words building story are not lost words. Even if you rewrite them 30 times after they’ve been written. That’s the essence of editing. Aren’t you going to edit all your dialogues? You seem like a self respecting writer, so I am assuming you’re not going to write a dialogue and say it’s finished after the first go. NaNo is build on the same principle, except that’s about the full novel, not only dialogues.

The last thing you said, that once you’ve written 50k, you’re not going to go through them with a critical eye, might be true for some people. I also get annoyed at people doing that, and I know quite a few people who think their first draft is the bomb. Those people have no eyes for reality and don’t reflect well on the rest of NaNo’ers. For every first drafter there is, there are three people who use November to finish their story and then spend the rest of the year editting it. Some people use NaNo as a kick to their butt, and after November they start writing more books.

I’m sorry if this comment sound confrontational or anything, I don’t mean to make you feel bad. I just disagree, and wish to open a dialogue by explaining my POV. Your article was well written, so this is definitively not a reflection on your ability, only on your opinion.

I don’t mind that you disagree! You make valid points. I tend to see writing differently – of course I believe in editing after finishing something and not just during, but my point was that nano tends to waste more time.

You bring up that most people need to know they can write which is why they do nano, but as a young writer myself I know that I have many years of hard work to make my craft better. Writing isn’t about just writing a story, it’s about loving language and using the best language possible to craft a story. You say how can you see where you’re going wrong unless you finish a manuscript, but I’d say it’s harder to judge your own work anyway. This is was workshops are so important, but if a writer can’t go to one then I’d say reading the best novels (as in tried over the decades- Jane Austen, James Joyce, Raymond Carver, etc) not just new novels, as well a reading books on writing. With this you see how they made it work and why.
So I disagree with the notion you have to finish a novel to see where you mess up because it doesn’t add up – to me.
As for gaining confidence, the writer must find it in themselves through working hard on their craft. I’ve been writing for years, was a writing major in college and I still get those thoughts of ‘I’m never going to be good enough,’ but when I work hard I feel like I’m accomplishing more than just writing something down, I’m learning to write well. But like I said, this is a long road and good writer’s will say the same.
I’ve read a lot. I use to be really into stories from wattpad as a teenager, but I realised as I got older they hindered my reading ability for really well written novels, because I just wanted the story not the beauty of the language and what language could do. I’m personally biased, but I don’t think everyone should be.

Thank you for your feedback, and I hope I don’t come off as snobby or anything! I appreciate everything you brought up 😊

Wholly agree! But let’s not forget the stress factor, too. For new writers, failure to complete Nano won’t just be a failure to win a competition, or even finish the ‘race’ but it can be a personal failure also. This snowballs into them thinking they’re not good enough because they couldn’t hack out 50,000 words in a month. Hence, they could stop writing altogether. Nano’s damaging on many levels, especially for the newcomer, who forgets about drafting, proofreading, line editing because none are needed at Nano. They walk away thinking they’re not needed at all, and if you watch book sales at the end of Nano’s month you’ll see a plethora of ‘Nano Winners,’ badly edited flooding the shelves.
Rant over. Need chocolate 😀

You gave me a lot to think about! Last year I managed 25,000 words writing about theology and you’re so right. All I did was FINISH my goal of half. I have not once even looked at those words since. If it’s okay with you, I’m going to bring this idea to my writers group today. 🙂

I’m not doing NaNoWriMo. I have other things to do. With that said, it might be helpful in one respect: to get you in the habit of writing (although I can’t imagine why I’d ever need to write 50,000 words in a month). So there’s the idea of pursuing creativity as a habit, while for others, it might be just for fun. To each their own, I guess.

Every year I hem and haw about participating in NaNoWriMo. I spend the month of October wondering if I should write, or maybe I shouldn’t bother. If I did write, what would I write about? This goes on, back and forth, for 31 days. Then, on November 1st, I decide, “Yes, I’m going for it!” I get a half-assed idea and I start writing away.

Then, about a week in, after working 9 hours a day, Monday through Friday, running errands all day Saturday because I don’t have time to do them otherwise, and a Sunday that’s mostly taken up with a personal responsibility, I realize that there’s no way I can write 50,000 words in a month.

I go through this self-inflicted trauma because I love it. It’s like a holiday to me. More, it gives me an incentive to stop thinking about writing and actually do it. I know I’m not a writer. I know that I will never be a writer. But NaNoWriMo gives me a month to pretend that I am.

There was one year when I did finish it, though. I went to write-ins, I went to the parties, and I told people not to bother me because I was writing my November Novel. Period. And it was a really great time and I attribute that to me going to the various events.

For years I belonged to a weekly writer’s workshop and some of the writers there would do NaNoWriMo. But I never saw anyone who was “serious” who did. There’s just too much to writing a good novel to do it in only 30 days. And while I often say “anything worth doing is worth doing badly,” writing a genre designed for publication is does not fall into the category. Maybe writing postcards does, but that’s a different story.

I agree with you. Some people just seem to enjoy aiming for arbitrary numbers. Though, I still think that there’s some merit to being able to dedicate oneself to one particular thing for an entire month.

NaNo’s not for everyone – that’s for sure!
I personally enjoy the challenge, and often find it’s my most productive month of the year. I’ve only met the goal once before, but I’m okay with that.
You’re right, it’s not some magical task that will change your life or anything, but I think (for me anyway!) it’s a big leap in the right direction. Most of us face some writing fatigue afterward, and many put down the manuscript for…. months, hell maybe even years. But I think that’s ok, because it’s something there that you can come back to whenever you feel the desire.
If not, it’s a simply an exceptionally long writing exercise haha.
To each their own!
Interesting points though, I’d never thought to read why one wouldn’t partake 🙂

I agree for the most part. I didn’t participate in the 30 days of novel writing (although a “novel” idea) because I don’t like to be rushed when it comes to my passions. Art and writing – I do these as a means of relaxation and somewhat anxiety therapy. It would make no sense for me to anxiously write when I use writing to combat anxiousness. That’s kind of akin to keeping my gun clean because I plan to shoot myself in the foot later . . . Not really what I’m aiming for, pardoned pun.

I did do the 30 day blog challenge because it’s more like a disciplined thing that needs a schedule. And, I knew I had tons of stuff already, like comics I’ve produced and poetry I’ve already write I could post indiscriminately. Therefore, I could cheat!

At any rate, it may be right for some people, and not for others. I refuse to be rushed, however, for most of the reasons you posted.

Nanowrimo is the cure for “First Chapter Syndrome” and “Someday Syndrome”
1) someone creates the perfect, beautifully polished first chapter, and no rest of the book – even though after a first draft, the first chapter may have to be revised extensivly.
2) Someday imma write a book. Really Someday. You’ll see.

I agree and disagree. Nanowrimo can be seen both in a positive and a negative light. I think the biggest issue happens when people believe they have to hit that 50k word limit in just a month. Then if they don’t they only get discouraged and stop writing for a while, get super depressed, or/and just give up on that piece. The thing is, only a small amount of people actually reach 50k and that is okay. The reality of our society is that most of us are just too busy with jobs, school, or other requirements. Besides not reaching the goal shouldn’t be seen as a punishment but rather you should be proud to have written and started as many words as you did.

This is where the positive side of Nanowrimo comes in. It helps people get started on something if they have been struggling. It also allows for some interesting sentences to be written because fast doesn’t always mean bad.

So, in the end, it just depends on the person you are. Some people should do Nanowrimo, while others can if they want, but should understand not to punish themselves if they cant reach that goal. In the end, I think the way our self-esteem can be affected so easily, that as writers it is what hurts us the most. I’m not trying to blame writers, but I think we should all try to be more self-confident in our work and take pride in who we are and what we write.

Hmmm. Interesting points! Most of the discussion I’ve seen about Nanowrim has been positive, so it’s neat to read a different perspective. I agree that writing faster does not make writing better and can certainly hurt it, but overall, though, I think Nanowrimo has value for a few reasons:

-A lot of writers have a fear of starting or finishing a work because they worry so much about what others will think, that it’s poor quality, etc. Nanowrimo gives writers an opportunity to focus on something else, like word count, the idea of writing regularly, something other than the usual concerns, which gets them writing. It’s a good writing exercise, because bottom line: if we don’t write, we won’t get better. If we obsess over the language and other craft elements consistently before the work is finished, we might never finish it. I’m not suggesting that we shouldn’t edit as we write; just that it can became counterproductive if it holds us back from moving forward.

-From a business perspective, writers and editors, in any industry, have to learn to say, “This is good enough” because of time, budget, and scope constraints. It sucks, but it’s a reality. It also does not mean the work is bad. I think creative people as a “breed” are perfectionists, so it’s easy to never be satisfied. Nanowrimo gives writers practice in writing under certain constraints.

Your post reveals how much respect you have for the art and craft of fiction writing. You are able to step back and, without beating yourself up, assess that you need to work on dialogue, and set strategies and goals for improving your dialogue.

There are so many highly talented fiction writers, screenwriters, etc. who never learn how to step back and do this and therefore never succeed in making real money from creative writing. I am returning to fiction after a few years of focusing on full-time job, kids, and journalism. It is different than writing stand-up and non-fiction.

Blindly writing 50,000 words in a month could work for some though — someone who is blocked or too perfectionist.